Professor Ben Wadham

Professor

College of Education, Psychology and Social Work

place Education (5.08)
GPO Box 2100, Adelaide 5001, South Australia

Ben is the Director of the Open Door: Improving the Wellbeing of Veterans, Public Safety Personnel and their Families research initiative in the College of Education, Psychology, and Social Work. Open Door is an Australasian research hub that brings together veterans, public safety personnel and their families, scholars, and practitioners together around key research, service provision, and policy/legislation initiatives. Open Door is connected to other veteran, public safety personnel and ther families research hubs across the five-eye nations.

As a Veteran, Ben's research is focused on the health and wellbeing of serving personnel and Veterans. He conducts sociological and criminological research on the ADF and DVA including institutional abuse in the ADF, veteran suicide, and veteran transition into higher education. Ben also researches men's violence prevention.

Ben writes about the cultural history of the Australian Defence Force (ADF). He is currently Chief Investigator on an Australian Research Council Grant titled "Veteran Suicide" Investigating the Social and Historical Dimensions" and lead the first national study of "Institutional Abuse and Organisational Reform within the ADF (1969-). Ben has led numerous grants investigating veteran transition, education and recognition of prior learning. These studies explore how effective tertiary education is as a transition pathway. Ben is currently leading an Ben conceived of, and led, the development of the Military Academic Pathway Program (MAPP) at Flinders University, the only foundation course for veterans in Australia.

Qualifications
BA Hons (Sociology),
PhD (Sociology)
Grad Cert Public Policy
Honours, awards and grants

Australian Postgraduate Award 1998-2002

Australian Defence Medal

Key responsibilities

Director, Open Door: Improving the Wellbeing of Veterans, Public Safety Personnel and their Families research initiative

Teaching interests
  • Qualitative Research Methodologies
  • Social Theory
  • Race, Gender, Nation
  • Militarism & Violence
  • Policy and Governance
  • Veteran and Military Studies
  • Military People and Culture
Interests
  • Institutional abuse
  • Masculinity
  • Military culture
  • Veteran Suicide
  • Veteran Transition and Wellbeing
  • Veterans in Prison
Further information

Ben Wadham is a member of the Australian Peacekeeping and Peacekeeper Veterans Association (APPVA), The RAR Assocatioan, The Miltiary Police Assocation of Australia and The Defence Force Welfare Association. He is the Vice President of he Defence Force Welfare Association - SA.